'The best of what it is to be Irish': Caitríona Twomey accepts award on Late Late

A Cork volunteer who has helped tens of thousands of peopazle was asked on Friday night’s Late Late Show to accept an award on behalf of all of the volunteers in Ireland.

Caitríona Twomey, volunteer co-ordinator of Cork Penny Dinners, told The Echo that when she was asked to come on the RTÉ flagship programme, she had assumed it would be to talk about the Government’s decision to end the temporary ban on evictions.

Instead, the Peacock Lane native was asked to represent the volunteers of Ireland and, alongside Alan Bailey of Dublin’s Capuchin Day Centre, she was presented with an award for her outstanding good works over the years.

Ms Twomey has served Cork Penny Dinners for almost two decades, and in that time the city’s oldest charity has gone from serving about 500 meals per week to often serving over 1,000 meals in a single day.

Alan Bailey, a retired garda from New Ross, Co Wexford, first volunteered at the Capuchin Day Centre in 1972, and is now volunteer co-ordinator with the charity.

Late Late host Ryan Tubridy, who this week announced that this will be his final year helming the world’s second longest talk show – America’s The Tonight Show started eight years before us, in 1954 – presented Ms Twomey and Mr Bailey with the annual Late Late Show St Patrick’s Day Award.

“Every year, just at the end of our show, we like to celebrate the best of Ireland, the people who make us so proud for all the right reasons,” Mr Tubridy said.

“This is – as we know – a beautiful country, it’s a great country, we’ve seen the best of Ireland here tonight, but everywhere, and every place, has things that could be better, and we could do better, and homelessness is an issue that persists to this day.

“And like every bad situation, it can still bring out the best in some people, and so in this country, every night of every week of every month of every year, volunteers across this country give their time to people who need it more than you or me.

"So tonight, we’ve decided that we would love to present the award to a group of people who offer hope and show the best of what it is to be Irish, that is, kindness, tenacity, decency, night in, night out, up and down the country,” he said.

Ms Twomey said to be asked to represent the volunteers of Ireland was a great honour and one she would never forget.

“To get this award tonight with Alan Bailey of the Capuchin Day Centre means the world to me,” Ms Twomey said.

“Brother Kevin Crowley is one of my most favourite people in the world, so obviously it’s just a great honour to be here from Penny Dinners with the Capuchin Centre.” 

Award dedication 

Ms Twomey told The Echo she was accepting the award on behalf of the “outstanding volunteers” of Cork Penny Dinners, and was dedicating it to her family, to her friends and neighbours.

“This is for all of the volunteers in the whole country, this is for everyone,” she said.

“I’m blessed to have two families. The volunteers in Penny Dinners, they’re my Penny Dinners family, and I have my own family at home too. 

"I’m thinking of all of my grandchildren and want to say a happy birthday to my oldest granddaughter, Becky, she’s going to be 18 on Tuesday.”

Characteristically, Ms Twomey said she had been hoping to get the chance to discuss the Government’s decision to end the temporary ban on evictions at the end of the month, and she did, in the brief time available to her, raise the issue on the Late Late.

“I’m very, very upset about that, and I just don’t understand why they have decided to do that,” she said.

At a public meeting in Cork during the week, Ms Twomey said Government TDs needed to be asked straight questions, and of the public needed to demand straight answers.

“Why hasn’t everybody got a home? Why can’t everybody put food on their table? Why can’t everybody access health services? Why are there so many waiting lists to see consultants?” Ms Twomey asked.

“Why does the Government think it’s okay to lift the eviction ban and put more people into the misery that people are already in and have been for years and years?”